


Open Secret

by LizzyPaul



Category: Baby-Sitters Club - Ann M. Martin
Genre: Christmas, M/M, Oblivious, Siblings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-05-28
Updated: 2012-05-28
Packaged: 2017-11-06 04:10:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,835
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/414548
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LizzyPaul/pseuds/LizzyPaul
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The problem, Byron decided, was that his family thought they had him all figured out.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Open Secret

**Author's Note:**

  * For [mizzmarvel](https://archiveofourown.org/users/mizzmarvel/gifts).



“Remember when we were kids?” Jeff asked. “And we snuck out and rode our bikes all over town, looking at Christmas lights?”

Byron smiled, half at the memory, and half at the sweet, nostalgic look on Jeff’s face. “Yeah,” he said. 

“That was fun.” 

Jeff was sprawled across his bed, absently flipping through Jordan’s _Guitar World_. Byron didn’t know where Jeff’s sudden reminiscence was coming from, but he had no problem indulging it. “We could do it again,” he suggested. “Not sneak out, maybe, because we’re still a few hours before curfew. And, uh, we could drive. If you wanted.”

Jeff grinned and tossed the magazine aside. “Cool,” he answered, and pushed himself up off Byron’s bed. He reached a hand down and pulled Byron to his feet, then nudged him with his hip. “You just wanna show off your new car powers.”

“Yeah,” Byron admitted, still a little heady from his new driver’s license and the key to the station wagon his parents had presented him with. 

“Maybe we can hit Starbucks while we’re out,” Jeff added, with the attempted nonchalance of a longtime addict. “Unless you think it would take away from the...y’know...”

Byron didn’t know, really, but he played along. “Sounds good.”

He followed Jeff downstairs and tried not to watch his ass the whole way, because that was just. Well. Just wrong. Byron was pretty sure that oogling your straight, oblivious friend was a serious ethical violation. Also, very frustrating. 

Adam and Jordan were making sandwiches in the kitchen. “We’re going to go look at Christmas lights,” Jeff said. “Wanna come?”

Adam looked between the two of them, and Byron could see him getting the wrong idea. He tried to say, _it’s not what you think, we’re just looking at Christmas lights for old time’s sake, you can come if you want_ by blinking and shaking his head, but that _really_ gave Adam the wrong impression.

“Oh, no, I’m busy,” Adam said, with the worst fake regretful face Byron had ever seen.

“I’ll come,” Jordan said, and Adam kicked him. “Dude! What the fuck?” Adam glared, and Jordan’s eyes widened, and he said, hastily, “Oh, yeah, I’m totally busy, too. With, uh, Adam. And stuff.”

Jeff looked adorably confused, and Byron was starting to get a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach. 

“We’re not...” he tried to say, in a low voice, but Jeff was _right there_. 

“We’re not going?” Jeff asked. His eyes drew together, a little hurt, a lot confused, and Byron really wanted to kiss the corner of his downturned lips. 

“Sure we are,” he assured Jeff. “Let me go clear this with Mom and Dad, okay? I should ask before I take the car.”

“Smug bastard,” Jordan muttered. He still hadn’t passed the driver’s test.

Byron left Jeff with his brothers and hunted down his parents. He found them in their room, sitting on the bed, talking. At least, Byron was going to assume they were talking before he knocked, because the alternative was too horrifying to contemplate. 

“Hey, so can Jeff and I take the car? We want to go look at Christmas lights.”

His parents looked at each other. 

“I’m not sure,” his mom said, her lips tight. 

“Do you think that’s a good idea?” his dad asked.

“Oh. My. God!” Byron exclaimed. “What’s the matter with you people? We’re just friends, okay? We’re just going to grab a couple cappuccinos and drive around and pretend we’re ten again. Except with a car. And, um, money and a taste for coffee. Alright? Please?”

“I want you home by nine-thirty,” she said. “And you know the rules for the car.”

Of course he knew the rules. It wasn’t like he was ever going to forget _that_ conversation, try as he might. His father fidgeting in the corner, his mother’s even voice as she looked right at him and explained, “No parking in a deserted area. No heavy petting. No getting in the backseat. No kissing while the car is in motion,” while Byron squirmed and tried not to die of humiliation. 

“We trust you,” his dad said, and smiled at him without meeting his eyes.

“What _ever_ ,” Byron grumbled, too uncomfortable to argue with them. “I’ll be back on time. Thanks.”

He shut the door behind him when he left. _Parents_.

He collected Jeff from the kitchen, practically having to drag him away from an argument over guitar brands, of all things. “You’re out of your mind!” Jeff shouted over his shoulder at Jordan. “I wouldn’t wipe my ass with an Epiphone!”

“I hope not,” Byron said. “Ouch.” Jeff rolled his eyes. 

They put on their coats and were about to leave, but his dad caught him before he could get out the door. “Here,” he said, pushing something in Byon’s hand before shuffling away. Byron looked down. It was a condom. 

“What’s that?” Jeff asked, and Byron quickly shoved it in his coat pocket. He hoped it was dark enough outside to hide his blush.

“Cough drop,” he lied. “Come on, I’ve got to be home in an hour.”

*~*~*

Jeff jacked the heater to maximum, of course, so it wasn’t long before Byron’s coat was thrown in the backseat. They didn’t talk a lot, mostly just looked, as Byron drove up and down the city streets. There were a few areas that were totally done up, and Byron drove them through the downtown area (“ _Downtown_ ,” Jeff always snarked. “That’s so _cute_.”) so they could see the big Christmas tree, all lit up. 

Out of the corner of his eye, Byron saw Jeff wipe his nose with his sleeve. “Aw, gross, dude,” he said. “There’s a kleenex in my jacket pocket.”

“I’m good,” Jeff sniffed, then audibly inhaled a bunch of snot. 

“Jeez!” Byron exclaimed. He smacked Jeff’s arm. “Ew! You’re worse than my sister! Just grab a freaking tissue.”

“Sure, _Mom_ ,” Jeff said, and Byron _felt_ the eyeroll, even though he couldn’t see in the dark car. 

Jeff unbuckled his seatbelt and rooted around in the backseat until he found Byron’s coat. He made a little sound and then said, “Whoa,” and Byron remembered, three minutes too late, what he’d shoved in his pocket.

_Please don’t throw up_ , he begged himself. 

Jeff climbed back in the seat, holding a couple tissues, and buckled himself back up. Then he pitched the condom at Byron’s head. “So, not a cough drop,” he said, sounding amused.

“Uh,” Byron said.

“What, your dad figures ‘drive around and look at Christmas lights’ is some kind of euphemism for, ‘pick up hot chicks and have sex’?” 

Byron sighed. “Yeah, guess so,” he said, resigned. Straight. Right. It was good to have these little reminders, so he’d keep from doing something stupid. “He’s a child of the sixties. What can you do?”

“I hear that,” Jeff agreed.

*~*~*

Byron dropped Jeff off at his house before coming home. He could hear the girls giggling over a TV show, and he gulped down a glass of water, then stumbled up the stairs. He’d been hard for pretty much the last hour, and wanted nothing more than to fall into bed, jack off, and try to sleep through till Christmas. 

Being around Jeff was enough to make him edgy. Jeff was _perfect_ , all sun-blond hair and tan skin and bright eyes and dimpled smile and just your basic fantasy wrapped up in a sweet, lightly sarcastic, adorable, all-around Nice Guy package. Of course Byron wanted him. Byron had wanted before he understood what it meant. 

And it didn’t help that Jeff was California casual touchy. “Oh, I’m _cold_ , I’ll just put my hands under your shirt for a minute.” “I can’t see from here, can I lean over you?” And the kicker, when he’d leaned into Byron’s neck and _sniffed_ , “Wow, you smell nice, what kind of shampoo do you use?” If Byron had turned his head, just a little bit, they would have been kissing. 

Of course, then Jeff would have punched him, and he’d probably have crashed the car. Frustrated was better than dead. Frustrated was better than a ruined friendship. 

Byron didn’t bother getting undressed, just kicked off his jeans and crawled into bed. Nicky looked at him from across the room. 

“So how’d it go?” Nicky said, and tried to leer, which was just _wrong_.

Byron buried his head in his pillows and groaned. 

*~*~* 

“How was it?” Adam said.

Byron blinked his eyes open. Light was streaming in through his window. He realized there was something heavy across his stomach, and looked over. Jordan was lying next to him, curled on his side, his arm slung casually across Byron’s stomach. Byron pushed up on his elbows and saw Adam sitting at the foot of his bed. Byron groaned, and Jordan gave his belly a comforting pat.

“Did it hurt?” Jordan asked.

“What?” Byron asked, still sleep-confused. Then his brain caught up and he exclaimed, “No!”

“You were on top?” Adam said. “Go Byron!”

“That’s my boy,” Jordan said, and gave him a wet smack on the cheek. 

Byron pushed him away and rolled out of bed. “No! No! We’re not having sex! _Christ_.”

Adam looked hurt, almost, which Byron found too ridiculous for words. “What happened?” he said. “Or did you get scared?”

“Pussy,” Jordan coughed into his hand.

“Don’t you like him?” Adam asked. “Because you’re my brother, but Jeff’s my friend, and if you’re just stringing him along, I might have to kick your ass. And Jordan will help.” Jordan nodded.

Byron wondered if he was still asleep, but a surreptitious pinch just hurt. “Jeff isn’t gay,” he said slowly.

“What are you talking about?” Adam asked. “Of course he is.”

“I’m sure he likes you,” Jordan said. “Don’t worry.”

“After all, we both know how hot you are,” Adam said with a smirk. 

Byron pinched the bridge of his nose and prayed for strength. Or to be an only child. “He’s _straight_.”

“Wait, you’re serious?” Adam asked. “You didn’t hear?”

Byron’s eyes flew open. “Hear what?”

Jordan and Adam looked at each other. “We thought...how did you not know?” 

“Hear. _What_?” Byron growled.

“Mallory,” Jordan explained. “We heard her telling Mom that Kristy had said that she’d talked to Mary Anne, and Mary Anne said Dawn was a little worried because their dad had caught Jeff with another guy. Like _caught_ him caught him.”

Nothing was making sense. It was like the one time Byron had tried pot...he heard the words, he knew there were sentences making a statement, but his brain felt foggy. “I think you’re confused,” he said, finally.

“And I think you’re retarded,” Adam snapped.

“Aren’t you supposed to have, like, gaydar or something?” Jordan asked.

“Yeah, he listens to _Fall Out Boy_ ,” Adam said, like that explained everything. 

“I need to sit down,” Byron said, sat hard on his bed. 

Adam and Jordan sat on either side of him. Adam slung an arm around his shoulders. “You really didn’t know,” he said. 

Byron shook his head. 

“Well, now you know,” Jordan said. There was a pause, and the boys looked at each other and grinned.

“ _And knowing is half the battle_ ,” they recited together.

*~*~*

Byron quickly realized that Adam and Jordan were undertaking Operation Hook Up with a fervor not seen since their days with the SA’s. 

“Oh, look, mistletoe,” Adam said, and pushed Byron against Jeff.

Jeff helped Byron get steady, then grinned and pecked him on the cheek. He turned to Jordan. “So, are you going to teach me the chord progression for ‘Sex and Candy,’ now?” he asked. 

“Sure,” Jordan said, looking disappointed.

“Did you get a _badge_ for that?” Byron hissed, when Jeff was out of earshot, and Adam had the decency to look embarrassed.

When they sat down at dinner, they awkwardly managed to get Jeff and Byron next to each other on the bench seat. “Move down, I’m hanging off the edge.” Jordan, who was on Byron’s left, shoved him hard, until he was practically sitting on Jeff’s lap. 

“This is cozy,” Jeff said.

“I’ve got room,” Margo said, from Jeff’s right, and scooted down until Jeff had some more space, ignoring Adam’s pained, “ _Margo_.”

Later, after Jeff had gone home, Byron cornered his brothers and said, “Look, it’s not that I don’t appreciate what you’re trying to do, but you’ve got to stop.”

“Stop what?” Jordan tried. 

“I’m serious, you guys. Just because I’m gay, and Jeff _might_ be gay, doesn’t mean that we’re supposed to be together. Okay? Even gay guys can just be friends.” He resisted adding ‘duh,’ because his brothers weren’t _trying_ to be jerks. 

Adam was shaking his head, though. “It’s got nothing to do with that,” he said.

“Well, maybe a little to do with that,” Jordan interjected.

“Maybe some gay dudes can be friends, but not you and Jeff.”

Byron sighed. “I know you’re trying to be nice...”

“It’s because you’re Byron, and he’s Jeff,” Adam interrupted. “And you guys are meant to be together.”

“Yeah,” Jordan said.

Byron blinked. “Do you have any idea how enormously _gay_ that sounds?”

“Byron!” Adam exclaimed.

“Seriously,” Byron said. “Even I’m not that gay, and I saw _Dreamgirls_ six times.”

Jordan shook his head. “Internalized homophobia,” he said to Adam. “I read a book about it.”

“Sad,” Adam agreed.

Byron threw his hands up in exasperation. “Fine! Okay? You win! I’ll go talk to him! You two are driving me _crazy_!” He stomped out the door.

“Cool,” Jordan said, and he and Adam high-fived.

*~*~*

Byron knocked on the Spiers’ front door. Jeff answered the door, wearing nothing but a thin t-shirt and a faded pair of jeans. His bare feet peeked out from under the wide, baggy legs. He gave Byron a genuine, enthusiastic smile when he saw him, and Byron started to feel a little dizzy. “Hey, Byron,” he said warmly.

“Uh,” Byron said.

Jeff blinked. “Is everything okay? You look a little pale.”

“So my brothers said you’re gay,” Byron said.

Jeff’s eyes got big. “Jesus, Byron!” he hissed. He stepped outside and pulled the door shut behind him. “Richard’s in there!”

“Sorry,” Byron said. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out, and he realized that maybe planning out something to say would have been a good idea.

Jeff bounced from foot to foot. His hands were shoved under his armpits. “Can we do this before I die of exposure?”

“Baby,” Byron said fondly, even though he winced inwardly at the thought of being outside with bare feet. “I just wanted...um...I don’t know if you, uh....but I’m...”

“Fuck, it’s cold,” Jeff said. “Let's do this upstairs.” He was already moving back inside the house. He paused inside the doorway, looked back at Byron, who hadn’t moved. “So? You coming?”

“Yeah,” Byron said, and followed Jeff up the stairs.

When Jeff shut the door to his bedroom, Byron decided, _screw it_ , resigned himself to severe awkwardness in the near future, and leaned over and kissed Jeff, full on the mouth. 

Jeff grabbed Byron’s face between two hands and kissed him back. Byron’s mouth fell open in surprise and then, hello, that was Jeff’s _tongue_ , and there was the door behind his back and Jeff’s _thigh_ , and when he moved his hand to Jeff’s waist there was skin where his shirt rode up and _fuck_. 

When they pulled apart, both of them were breathing heavy. “Whoa,” Jeff said. “I’m so happy.” Byron started to get a warm feeling in his stomach, and then Jeff added, “I thought my gaydar was broken.” 

Byron frowned, and Jeff quickly said, “And because I’m kissing you! Kissing you makes me happy, too! It’s just...” he ran a hand through his hair. “I, uh, thought you were gay, but after the last couple days, I figured you must be straight or something.”

“I’m not straight,” Byron said, but as his hand was currently under Jeff’s shirt, tracing his hipbone, it was an unnecessary clarification.

Jeff smiled and leaned forward, brushing his lips across Byron’s again. “Yeah, figured that one out,” he said. “Didn’t even need a tutor.” Byron’s fingers dipped underneath the waistband of Jeff’s jeans, and Jeff slid closer, pressing their mouths together again. 

“You, on the other hand,” Jeff said, after a minute, “I thought I was going to have to draw you a chart or something.”

“What are you talking about?” Byron asked. 

“I stuck my _hands_ under your _shirt_ ,” Jeff said. “I practically sat on your lap when we went driving around.”

“I thought you were straight!” Byron exclaimed.

“Oh yeah, that’s very hetero,” Jeff sniggered. “Dude, I sniffed your hair!” 

“I...you know what? Shut up,” Byron suggested, and kissed him again.

*~*~*

Under the Christmas tree, Adam gave him a couple CDs, and Jordan gave him a book about gay people in the Victorian age. 

When Byron got upstairs, he found a box of fruit-flavored condoms and a bottle of lube waiting on his pillow.

**Author's Note:**

> I do not support the use of words like "retarded" and "gay" as insults, and when my brothers ever use them that way, I smack them down hard. I would hope that as the Pike triplets get older, they become more thoughtful about their word choices. However, I decided that allowing the characters to speak authentically was important. No insult is intended, and such language does not reflect the opinion of the author.


End file.
